Modular miniature unmanned aircraft with vectored thrust control
First Claim
1. An aircraft for unmanned aviation, comprising:
- an airframe having a fixed wing attached thereto;
a plurality of fins attached to a rear portion of the airframe;
at least a first thrust vectoring module and a second thrust vectoring module, the at least two thrust vectoring modules being configured to (i) provide lateral and longitudinal control to the aircraft by directly controlling a thrust vector, and (ii) to independently control pitch, roll, and yaw of the aircraft, each of the at least two thrust vectoring modules is attached to the fixed wing by an integrated non-destructive breakaway mount, each thrust vectoring module being independently articulable with respect to a portion of the fixed wing to which it is attached; and
an electronics module configured to provide commands to the at least two thrust vectoring modules, wherein the breakaway mount is capable of breaking away upon impact.
11 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An aircraft for unmanned aviation is described. The aircraft includes an airframe, a pair of fins attached to a rear portion of the airframe, a pair of dihedral braces attached to a bottom portion of the airframe, a first thrust vectoring module and a second thrust vectoring module, and an electronics module. The electronics module provides commands to the two thrust vectoring modules. The two thrust vectoring modules are configured to provide lateral and longitudinal control to the aircraft by directly controlling a thrust vector for each of the pitch, the roll, and the yaw of the aircraft. The use of directly articulated electrical motors as thrust vectoring modules enables the aircraft to execute tight-radius turns over a wide range of airspeeds.
-
Citations
19 Claims
-
1. An aircraft for unmanned aviation, comprising:
-
an airframe having a fixed wing attached thereto; a plurality of fins attached to a rear portion of the airframe; at least a first thrust vectoring module and a second thrust vectoring module, the at least two thrust vectoring modules being configured to (i) provide lateral and longitudinal control to the aircraft by directly controlling a thrust vector, and (ii) to independently control pitch, roll, and yaw of the aircraft, each of the at least two thrust vectoring modules is attached to the fixed wing by an integrated non-destructive breakaway mount, each thrust vectoring module being independently articulable with respect to a portion of the fixed wing to which it is attached; and an electronics module configured to provide commands to the at least two thrust vectoring modules, wherein the breakaway mount is capable of breaking away upon impact. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
-
-
9. A control system for controlling a flight path of an unmanned aerial vehicle having an airframe with a fixed wing attached thereto, the system comprising:
-
at least a first thrust vectoring module and a second thrust vectoring module, the at least two thrust vectoring modules being configured to (i) provide lateral and longitudinal control to the vehicle by directly controlling a thrust vector, and (ii) to independently control pitch, roll, and yaw of the aircraft, each of the at least two thrust vectoring modules is attached to the fixed wing by an integrated non-destructive breakaway mount, each thrust vectoring module being independently articulable with respect to a portion of the fixed wing to which it is attached; and an electronics module configured to provide commands to the at least two thrust vectoring modules based on instructions received from a user of the control system, wherein the breakaway mount is capable of breaking away upon impact. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13)
-
-
14. A method for controlling an unmanned aerial vehicle having an airframe with a fixed wing attached thereto, the method comprising the steps of:
-
transmitting a control signal to an electronics module, the control signal including instructions for controlling a speed and a direction of the vehicle; causing the electronics module to provide a command to each of at least a first thrust vectoring module and a second thrust vectoring module; causing each of the at least first thrust vectoring module and second thrust vectoring module to provide thrust such that the vehicle is laterally and longitudinally controlled, each thrust vectoring module being independently articulable with respect to a portion of the fixed wing to which it is attached; and using non-destructive breakaway mounts to cause the first and second thrust vectoring modules to break away from the fixed wing upon impact. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
Specification